Greta Van Susteren joined Wheaton College students as they visited Ecuador to deliver Operation Christmas Child gift-filled shoeboxes. Tune in to her special Christmas Day!
Greta Van Susteren of Newsmax TV was in Ecuador this past weekend with Operation Christmas Child. Together with Wheaton College students, she distributed gift-filled shoeboxes to dozens of kids, spreading Christmas joy and sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ with each one. Van Susteren will air an exclusive feature on this child evangelism project on Christmas Day.
Van Susteren experienced firsthand the joy of Operation Christmas Child as she handed out shoebox gifts to children in Ecuador.
“Operation Christmas Child is one of my favorite Samaritan’s Purse projects,” Van Susteren said. “If you’ve ever packed a shoebox and wonder whether you’re really making a difference, I’ve seen with my own eyes that these gifts change lives.”
Tune in to “The Record with Greta Van Susteren” on Newsmax TV at 6 p.m. EST on Christmas Day to learn more about how God is working through Samaritan’s Purse. Watch the video above to hear from Greta in Ecuador!
Samaritan’s Purse has long worked in Ecuador, first delivering gift-filled shoeboxes there in 1997 and in 2009 launching The Greatest Journey, our follow-up discipleship program for shoebox recipients, for the first time ever in this nation.
Van Susteren and the group of 20 Wheaton College students attended several Operation Christmas Child outreach events across Quito, the capital city of Ecuador. They also celebrated graduates from The Greatest Journey in a joyous ceremony for the boys and girls who completed the 12-week discipleship course.
Boys and girls toss their caps in the air after graduating from The Greatest Journey.
A Legacy of Faithfulness
Edward Graham spoke in chapel at Wheaton College earlier this month, exhorting the students to stand boldly for their faith as they fulfill the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20) and highlighting the significance of the college in his family’s life. Over 80 years ago, the late Reverend Billy Graham graduated from Wheaton College before starting his global ministry that reached millions with the Gospel. Today, a primary academic hall at the college is named after Rev. Graham as an example of his lasting legacy.
“The greatest gift my grandfather gave me is the lesson and knowledge that every word in the Bible is true and that you have to accept it by faith,” said Edward Graham to the Wheaton College student body at chapel Dec. 4. “If you want to change the world, then you go preach the Gospel…and Jesus will go with you to the very end of the age.”
Alex Ramirez, student leader for the Ecuador trip, joins in prayer with Edward Graham at Wheaton College chapel Dec. 4.
Wheaton College has educated thousands of young people “for Christ and His kingdom” since its inception in 1860, and has partnered with Samaritan’s Purse in many ways to help the hurting around the world in Jesus’ Name.
“I love everything Samaritan’s Purse does, especially the simplicity of Operation Christmas Child,” said Dr. Philip Ryken, president of Wheaton College. “It’s just so simple. It’s just one box. It’s something that a child of any age can grab hold of, and it comes with the gift of God’s word.”
Part of the college’s legacy of faith includes Edward McCully and James Elliot, two graduates who were killed for their faith in 1956 by a remote tribe in Ecuador. McCully and Elliot, along with three other missionary colleagues (including Nate Saint, who also attended the college), attempted to reach the tribe with the Gospel of Jesus Christ but were tragically slain upon making contact. Their boldness to help fulfill the Great Commission and zeal to bring the Gospel to all peoples shines as a reminder for each Wheaton College student—including the 20 who traveled to Ecuador this past weekend—to “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations” (Matthew 28:19).
As we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ this Christmas, please pray for the Operation Christmas Child gift-filled shoeboxes that will soon be sent out into all the world in Jesus’ Name.
